


Another Step

by TransformersG1fan271



Series: Beginning Anew [5]
Category: The LEGO Movie (2014)
Genre: Angst, So much angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-16
Updated: 2018-07-16
Packaged: 2019-06-11 05:32:15
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,905
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15308553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TransformersG1fan271/pseuds/TransformersG1fan271
Summary: Ma and Pa finally find their boys.





	Another Step

Six months passed in seemed like a blink of an eye. Cold weather began to descend upon Bricksburg and many other realms, the change of seasons looking promising. With the lack of rules to follow, people could celebrate at their leisure, traveling wherever they could desire. Entering the city, a small and unassuming car carefully traveled through the busy city traffic, coming to a stop outside a rather ordinary apartment complex. An older couple exited the car, the driver moving to the truck while the passenger looked up at the building.

 

“I wonder why it’s not strange lookin’ like everythin’ else.” Ma Cop commented, her husband replying with a shrug. Ciaran closed the trunk, giving his wife Neila a pointed look.

“Could ye help me carry all this in?” Neila chuckled, moving to take a few of the tupperware containers he held, as well as one of their suitcases. No longer having to fear Business, the couple had decided it was about time they came together for a family holiday. Ciaran gently kissed her cheek before the two walked inside, heading to the older but functioning elevator in the corner of the lobby. The ride up to the seventh floor was short, Neila murmuring to her husband as they walked down the long hallway. Their destination was the very last apartment, it’s door just as unassuming as its neighbors. Neila shared a look with her husband before raising her hand to knock on the door.

“I wouldn’t if I was you.” Glancing to her right, they both spotted one of the inhabitants of another apartment on their way out. “You know who lives there?”

“Aye, of course, we do. Our sons.” Ciaran replied calmly, but the warning tone lacing the words did not go unnoticed. The inhabitant shook their heads, muttering something before spitting at their feet.

“You raised a pair of monsters, I hope you know that.” Ciaran just gave a smile, his gaze cold as ice as the person walked away with a disgusted look on their face.

“What an unhappy person Ma.” He shook his head, the two quickly looking to the door as it was unlocked. Daniel was the one to peer out at them after slowly opening the door, eyes going wide in alarm and what seemed fear.

“Can we come in dearie?” His mother smiled, watching as her son opened the door after his brother switched in.

“Hi Mum, hi Dad.” Liam smiled a bit, watching as they placed the food they had brought on his table. The room was sparse, Ciaran looking around a bit as his wife embraced Liam. When they pulled back from each other, Neila reached up with a soft look. She could feel Liam tense when she gently touched one of the scars that now adorned his face, her heart breaking for her sons.

“They’re lookin’ better son.” Ciaran murmured, placing his hand on Liam’s shoulder. “Yer Ma and I were worried...we haven’t heard from ye in a while.”

“Sorry...been caught up in work.” Liam looked down. It wasn’t technically a lie, as he had begun the administrative paperwork to get Bricksburg’s police departments back up and running. They had yet to actually go to one of the stations in person, still fearing a harsh reaction to their presence. Some of the email’s they received still had insults attached to them, but it was getting easier to ignore them now.

“Well, why don’t we get ya fed?” Neila spoke, noting how they probably hadn’t had a decent meal in some time. Liam grinned a bit at the suggestion, a light conversation filling the apartment as the table was set. It did not escape the couples’ notice that Daniel made no appearance.

“Son, is there a reason yer brother is hidin’?” Ciaran finally asked after dinner had been eaten. Liam froze, midway through preparing the guest bed for his parents to sleep in.

“W-What?” Liam looked over, Ciaran’s hands on his hips, while Neila looked on in worry.

“Ya heard me, son, why is Daniel hidin’?” Liam swallowed thickly, his heart racing as his parents waited for their answer.

_”I can’t face them.”_ Daniel sounded terrified at the prospect of talking to their parents. The parents he had let be kragled by his brother. The parents that had only been comforting right before being frozen for days. The parents he had failed.

“You didn’ fail them.” Liam murmured, Ma and Pa knowing they were speaking with each other.

_”They must hate me, I know it. I w_ as stubborn, I forced you to do it.” Daniel froze as he realized Liam had switched mid-sentence.

“He would have made sure ye had done it, son.” Neila spoke up, her heart breaking at how scared her son looked.

“Mum...I-I could have fought him.” He dropped the pillow Liam had been holding, not evening seeing his father move to catch his son before he sank to his knees. Ciaran gently coaxed Daniel to sit on the bed, his gaze concerned yet firm as Daniel reached up to force his brother into control.

“No, you don’t, Daniel Copper.” He said in his authoritative voice, crossing his arms as Daniel lowered his hand. He looked like a scolded child, gaze on the floor as his father let out a heavy sigh. “We just want to talk to ye son.”

“Yer friend Benny had to tell us ye were alive,” Neila spoke up, Daniel’s shoulders slumping. “Why didn’ ye let us know?” Daniel’s response was low and muttered, Neila, squaring her shoulders. “Answer me Daniel, right this instant.”

“I was afraid ye would hate us, ma’am.” He answered, having straightened in attention.

“What? Why on earth would we?” She sounded confused beyond belief, Daniel staring at his mother without a wavering glance.

“He threatened ye...over the years he threatened ye both. W-We couldn’t stop, even though it was bad…” Daniel’s voice began to crack, curling his hands into fists as he forced himself to continue. “We are cops...we’re supposed to uphold the law...but we were twistin’ it fer him. We failed ye both.”

“You did no such thing!” Their mother protested in an instant, taking Daniel’s face into her hands. Those mismatched eyes stared into hers, swirling with emotions from the sons she had raised from birth. Guilt, anger, confusion, awe, and overwhelming sadness were all too clear to say, Neila leaning forward to press a kiss to their forehead. “We are not angry with ye lads, not a little bit.”

“Ye were doin’ yer jobs, don’t ever apologize fer it.” Ciaran joined in, watching as Daniel just...broke. Neila was drawn forward as her sons clung to her, the sobs and the apologies coming from both of the at once. They would have done anything for their parents, and they had for eight and a half years without question. Yet, it had all been for naught. The fact that they knew, that they knew Business had threatened them, made the duo feel even worse. It was supposed to be their job to protect and serve, and they had failed at the most basic of levels. Neila and Ciaran comforted their sons, their hearts heavy as they shared a glance. Business had been bad news the first time they had met, his smile following the two every day as their boys began to work for them.

It was late by the time Daniel and Liam had stopped crying, led to their sparse bedroom by Neila. It was the first time they had fallen asleep with ease, their mother stroking their hair as she sang an old Irish lullaby.

“It’s worse than we thought Ma.” Her husband sighed, pulling up a chair beside the bed.

“Aye...our poor boys.” She murmured, tracing one of the more prominent scars with a saddened gaze. “I wanted so much ta stop ‘im.”

“Me too dear.” Pa frowned, remembering the murderous rage that still filled him from time to time. _Business_. He had taken their sons, turned them into a broken shell who was obedient to a fault and then at the end silenced them. When their friend Benny had come to them, the news that Danny was alive filled them both with absolute joy. The joy faded quickly, however, the couple becoming more and more horrified to learn what had happened to them since then. They left for Bricksburg the very next day, knowing they needed to be there for their sons. “We shoulda come earlier…”

“I know dear, but we couldn’t leave the precinct in its terrible shape.” She frowned. Business had all but destroyed the vast police network that had spanned the multiverses, and it was proving to be a challenge to repair it. He knew she was right, merely gazing at their sleeping sons.

Liam grumbled at the sunlight that hit his face, blindly reaching out for his glasses.

“Thought I told ye to close the blinds last night.” He muttered to his brother, sitting up with a yawn. His eyes went wide when last nights memories hit him like a truck, the man quickly getting up and onto his feet. The smell of croissants and coffee filtered in from the kitchen, Daniel taking control as he went to the kitchen.

“Good mornin’ dearies.” Neila greeted when she noticed her sons, Daniel smiling a bit as she pecked their forehead. “Would ye mind settin’ the table?”

“Sure thing Ma.” He nodded, a bit surprised to see a nice green tablecloth on the table, as well as some new chairs. “Ma?”

“I hope ye don’t mind, but this place is lookin’ a bit sparse.” She replied after noting his slight hesitation. “Pa and I got a few things ta start.”

“Ya didn’t need ta.” Liam replied, switching in as he set the table.

“Oh hush yerselves, this place is far too bare.” She scolded lightly, hand on her hip. “I know ye boys, and ye can’t stand this type of thing fer too long.” Liam frowned lightly, knowing she wasn’t too wrong. Working for Business had been a 24/7 job, so they had never really been home longer than the occasional night or two. “We’re goin’ out as a family later, and pickin’ ye out some nice things.”

“Ma, ye don’t need to.” Liam said once again, their father joining the conversation as he came out from getting washed up.

“Why? Do ye want to build them instead?” Placing a bowl of freshly cooked eggs on the table, she noticed them stiffen. They all had known to keep their familial abilities a secret while Business was in power, something the former overlord thankfully never figured out.

“That’s actually a great idea. It’s been a long time since we all built things tagether.” Ciaran nodded, Liam silent as they all sat down for breakfast. He was staring at his hands as if feeling the urge to build and create. Since Emmet had found him, they had refused to build anymore, almost afraid of another Master Builder catching them in the act. The revulsion would undoubtedly be massive, and they couldn’t handle any more hatred at the moment.

“Perhaps not.” Neila gently patted his arm, gaining Liam’s attention. “One step at a time dearie.”

“...one step at a time.” Liam nodded, giving a small smile before serving himself some of the food.

 

One step at a time indeed.


End file.
